


Cat's Cradle

by Snugglebuttkitten



Series: AU August [3]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Spy/Secret Agents, College AU, Gen, Humanized Kwami I guess, Kind of a Girls vs Guys Theme, The Boys work for Master Fu, The Girls work for Lady Paon, They're really called 'handlers' in this, and Wayzz, enemies to lovers AU, no kwami au, roommates au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-14
Updated: 2018-08-21
Packaged: 2019-06-26 19:54:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,528
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15670182
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Snugglebuttkitten/pseuds/Snugglebuttkitten
Summary: Marinette Dupain-Cheng is an ordinary girl, with an ordinary life. Except for the fact that when she isn't attending college classes or interning for Gabriel Fashion, she moonlights as Ladybug, the world's most notorious thief.Adrien Agreste has never been ordinary. Son of fashion mogul Gabriel Agreste and rising star supermodel, he has always been in the spotlight. Perhaps that's why he takes such joy in moonlighting as Chat Noir, Paris' resident vigilante and arch enemy of Ladybug.Following a lead his most trusted informant gave him, Adrien sets his sights on sweet, unassuming Marinette Dupain-Cheng and ends up taking the role as her new roommate. Marinette seems like a nice enough girl, but it's fairly obvious she's hiding something and Adrien is determined to expose her and put her behind bars once and for all. What he doesn't account for is falling in love with the sweet, compassionate girl behind the spotted mask he hates so much.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I am on a roll, seriously! Okay so again, a few of the prompts have been used before. I am aware and I don't care. Although I may overuse the Enemy trope by the end of AU August. So for this one, we are covering Days 2 (College), 30 (Roommates), 10 (Secret Agent), 4 (Enemy), 22 (Crime), and 19 (Reverse Crush).
> 
> To be honest, I might overuse Reverse Crush as well because it is probably in my top three favorite tropes in this fandom. I just love the idea of a flustered Adrien and a suave Marinette. Granted, Adrien is aged up and is more charming than flustered but he is still the dork we all know and love. And Marinette as Ladybug is the very definition of a femme fatale in this. Flirtatious, charming, and seductive ;) That's not really the definition but lemme have my fun, okay? Haha

“Alya, this is a bad idea,” Marinette Dupain-Cheng complained, shifting her overflowing book bag to one arm while trying to balance her cell phone between her ear and shoulder so that she could open the cafe door. It was Sunday morning, and as usual, Marinette found herself at her favorite cafe. Unlike usual, she wasn’t here exclusively to drink copious amounts of caffeine whilst forging through the pile of school assignments she had been neglecting during the week. No, while her usual Sunday routine was on the menu, first she was meeting with a guy. Not in a date-kind of way; Marinette barely had time to sleep or eat these days, let alone go on a date. With a full school schedule, a part-time job, and a demanding internship at the top fashion house in all of Paris, nay, all of _Europe_ , it was a wonder the twenty-two-year-old hadn’t gone insane. And that wasn’t even _counting_ how she spent most of her nights.

Rather, Marinette was meeting with a guy to discuss a possible roommate situation. Being a college student, Marinette was fairly poor and Paris wasn’t exactly cheap when it came to rent. She _could_ continue living in her parents’ attic but as much as she loved them, she craved her independence. Tom Dupain and Sabine Cheng were respectful of their daughter, but they just didn’t understand her need for privacy. Why would they, when their family had always been so close-knit? Marinette had always been open and honest with her parents, aside from her extracurricular activities, of course, and so she had never before felt the need to lock the trap door to her bedroom, or put a ‘Keep Out’ sign up like a lot of teens might resort too. The Dupain-Cheng family had always had an open door policy with each other.

The problem was, now Marinette was in her early twenties. She wasn’t a little girl anymore and after living more than twenty years with her parents she kind of craved that privacy now. Marinette worked part-time as a barista at a local coffee shop, and her internship with Gabriel Fashion was finally starting to pay her for her work, so she made enough that she could get a decent apartment in the heart of downtown… if she got a roommate. Otherwise, she would be forced to either forgo a basic necessity such as food or give up her easy access to public transportation and walkability to most shops in the area. She wasn’t super keen on giving up either of those things, so when Alya had suggested she get a place with a roommate she had reluctantly agreed to give it a shot.

Blessing that she was, her best friend had taken care of just about everything. Alya Cesaire was a journalism student, who was currently interning at one of the major newspapers in Paris. She had placed an ad in the paper, weeded through anyone who sounded like a creep or weirdo and had set up the interviews. All Marinette had to do was show up, ask a few questions and make her choice. And there had been some pretty good choices among the crop Alya had sent her way. The problem was, she simply didn’t connect with any of them. They were all nice enough, professional and hardworking individuals. Most of the candidates were also college students, or recent graduates just starting out in their careers, and a few of them Marinette really had enjoyed the company of. But she didn’t click with them the way she clicked with Alya or the other girls she worked with, and if she was going to be living with a total stranger, she really wanted to be one hundred percent comfortable with that individual. At the very least, she wanted them to be friends.

Which brought her to today and her newest interview. Alya had been pretty enthusiastic about this candidate, claiming him to be both charming and extremely handsome. Marinette had rolled her eyes at the description, pointing out not for the first time that she was looking for a roommate, not a boyfriend, but had agreed to the interview nonetheless. So here she was, at her favorite cafe, standing in a line that was five people deep and scanning the crowded cafe for a veritable sunshine child with hair spun from gold and eyes as green as a meadow. Alya’s words, not her own. She was a fashion designer, not a fucking poet. When her first scan of the cafe came up empty, Marinette turned back to the task at hand… which was convincing Alya that this was so not a good idea.

“It’s not a bad idea, Mari. You’re just getting cold feet because you haven’t found the right roommate. You’ll find the right person, I promise. These things take time,” her friend soothed, her natural confidence giving Marinette hope. Maybe her friend was right and she was just worrying over nothing.

“What did you say this guy’s name was?” Marinette asked, moving forward as another person collected their coffee and left the line.

“Adrien Pierce,” Alya supplied. There was a rustling of paper on her end of the line before she spoke again. “Age twenty-three, born August 20th meaning he’s a Leo, works fo LeClaire Fashion House as a model… hey, isn’t LeClaire one of Gabriel’s leading rivals?” Alya asked, momentarily getting sidetracked.

“Yeah, rumor has it Gabriel Agreste’s own son went to work for LeClaire after breaking his contract last year,” Marinette mused absent-mindedly, scanning the board above the counter as she tried to decide what she wanted to get.

“Damn… okay so possible conflict of interest there-”

“Alya, I don’t care if he works for a rival fashion house, really. I’m not _that_ shallow,” Marinette interrupted.

“Fair point,” her friend conceded before continuing with, “he’s in college too, trying to get his Masters in Physics.”

“Physics? I thought you said he was a model,” Marinette retorted incredulously, moving forward as the line did.

“He is! Apparently, he’s also a closet science nerd? Anyway, he wants to teach high school physics, so that’s pretty cool. Appearance wise, like I said he’s a-”

“Yes, yes, a veritable sunshine child with hair spun from gold and eyes as green as a meadow. I got that the first time, Alys. Seriously, if this journalism thing doesn’t work out, you have a career in creative writing,” she teased, easily able to imagine the scowl that comment always got her. Alya prided herself on writing only the truth and scoffed at the very idea of spinning stories that weren’t based purely on reality. Not that she had anything against fiction, perse. She would just never be caught dead writing it.

“Bite your tongue, Dupain-Cheng,” her friend snapped huffily, causing the dark-haired woman to chuckle in amusement.

“Yeah, yeah. Alright, I’m about to order my coffee so I’ll let you go,” Marinette said as the second to last customer in front of her stepped away from the counter.

“Okay! Call me right after to tell me how it went,” Alya chirped, her annoyance dissipating as quickly as it had come. Chuckling at her best friend, Marinette promised to call as soon as the interview was over and pocketed the phone just as the final customer stepped away. Moving to take the spot directly in front of the counter, she smiled at the familiar face of the barista who grinned right back.

“Morning, Candice!” She said warmly.

“Good morning, Mari. You’re here earlier than usual,” the brunette girl returned with a twinkle in her green eyes.

“Got a lot of work to do today. You know how I like to procrastinate on my homework during the week,” Marinette agreed with a sheepish grin. Behind her, a businessman in an expensive looking suit cleared his throat impatiently, causing a rosy flush to fill the girl’s cheeks. “Anyway, can I get a large iced vanilla coffee, extra cream, and flavoring? Something tells me I’m going to need the extra sugar boost to get through these assignments.”

Candice chuckled and nodded her understanding. Only a few years older than Marinette, she had been there as well and had no desire whatsoever to go back. She was more than happy to have her college days behind her. “Sure thing, hon, anything to eat?”

“A chocolate filled croissant sounds good,” Marinette decided after a moment’s hesitance. She hadn’t eaten breakfast before rushing out of the apartment that morning, too worried over being late after she slept through three alarms and her mother’s attempt at waking her up. Candice rang her up and took her money, handing her back her change with a smile. A moment later, a warm croissant and a cold iced coffee were thrust into her hands and she was moving off to find a table. She found one, eventually, in the very back corner of the cafe, and settled her meal before her. She still had a bit of time before Adrien was due to arrive, so she decided to crack open her History of Textiles book and get a head start on the book report she had due in two weeks time. Within minutes, Marinette was sucked into the words she was reading and the world around her ceased to exist.

  
  


Chat Noir was not used to being out in broad daylight. He was a man of the night, stealing through the darkness with a stealth reminiscent of his namesake, and bringing justice to those who sought to wrong the people he was sworn to protect. With the sun shining brightly above in a cloudless blue sky, he felt nothing short of exposed. The only thing that gave him a shred of comfort was the fact that his target was in too much of a hurry to pay attention to her surroundings. Or perhaps she simply wasn’t expecting him to come after her in broad daylight, and with her out of suit no less. Then again, it was also entirely possible that his best friend was wrong and the girl he had been stalking for the past month was just a normal college girl. Problem was, Carapace didn’t make a habit of being wrong. His friend was practically the embodiment of wisdom despite his youth, and Chat was rather inclined to believe him when he said that this girl, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, was the same woman he had been chasing across the Parisian rooftops for the last eight years.

It all started the night he turned sixteen. Adrien had been at home, watching a movie with his mother. Without warning, three men had busted down the door and barged inside, demanding a special brooch his father was apparently hiding. The brooch was some sort of priceless artifact his father had picked up in Tibet and was rumored to hold mysterious power, but at the end of the day, it was just a piece of jewelry. The teenaged boy couldn’t fathom why these men were so set upon getting the brooch, and he truly never expected them to kill for it. Adrien lost his mother and his childhood that night. He might have lost his life as well if Master Fu and his band of merry men hadn’t shown up when they did.

Team Miraculous, Master Fu had introduced the group, forgoing individual names until later when Adrien had agreed to join them. A group of young men from all walks of life who all, for some reason or another, wanted to fight crime and protect the city they called home. Master Fu has offered Adrien a way to get revenge on the men who had taken his mother from him; he had offered a way for Adrien to make a difference and be more than the pampered rich boy the world tended to view him as. Adrien hadn’t even hesitated to accept, and two days later he was introduced to Plagg, his handler. A lanky man with shaggy black hair and piercing green eyes, with a bad attitude and a disgusting obsession with stinky cheese, Plagg had run the young man ragged. He had trained him ruthlessly, pushing him to be more than he was, and Adrien had flourished under his tutelage.

When he had been deemed ready, Adrien had been introduced officially to Team Miraculous as Chat Noir, their new Leader. The boys had, for the most part, accepted him immediately. There was Le Chien Kim, aka Tauros, who was the muscle of most of the missions; Max Kanton, aka La Taupe, who handled most hacking jobs and created all the cool gadgets they used to fight crime; and finally Nino Lahiffe, aka Carapace. Nino was something of a jack of all trades. He was an expert spy, a master of disguise, and a brilliant hacker. He was also quick to become Chat Noir’s right-hand man and most trusted ally. It was Nino who first told him about Ladybug, their number one target.

From what he understood, Ladybug was affiliated with a woman who called herself Lady Paon (or the Blue Lady as some called her). She had other girls working for her, the most noticeable ones aside from Ladybug being Rena Rogue and Queen Bee, but Ladybug was their top operative. When Chat first met her, she couldn’t have been more than fourteen at the time. A scrawny kid, hair tied back in pigtails, her face a mass of freckles and dimples, Chat Noir had laughed the first time he had laid eyes on his opponent. He has since learned not to underestimate her, after somehow finding himself hogtied in the warehouse that had housed the painting he was trying to protect. Carapace still didn’t let him forget about that fateful first meeting, or really any of their meetings considering they all ended the same with Ladybug slipping away in the night leaving him with more than just a bruised ego more often than not.

Until now. The description definitely fit, and as he trailed her across the rooftops being careful to stay out of sight of the civilians and his target on the sidewalk below, he took a moment to study her. Ladybug had long-since gotten rid of her childish pigtails, instead preferring to wear her hair in a messy bun atop her head. The blue-black color was distinctive and unique, and there weren’t many Parisians with eyes that came anywhere close to her vibrant bluebell orbs. The freckles that had dominated her face in her youth had faded considerably, only a few stubborn ones sticking out boldly against her porcelain skin and rosy cheeks. The height and build were about right, too.

Physically speaking, Marinette could easily pass for Ladybug. But Chat Noir didn’t get to where he was today by jumping the gun. There were times he could be a bit impulsive when protecting his teammates, but something told him this would require a bit more finesse than barging in, guns blazing. If she caught even the slightest hint that Chat Noir was onto her civilian identity she would disappear with a new identity to terrorize a new city, and he would be back to square one. That wasn’t a risk he could afford to take. So Chat hung back, landing on the roof of the cafe only after she had disappeared inside. A quick peek assured him that the alley behind the cafe was empty and he dropped down from the roof, landing on all fours with a soft thud.

Straightening up, Adrien brushed his thumb over the hidden button on his black ring, and immediately the suit began to retract. Another one of La Taupe’s brilliant designs. His suit, which consisted of a form-fitting leather jacket with a black hood (complete with cat ears because he was _that_ extra), a utility belt that extended like a tail behind him, leather pants, and steel-toed combat boots fashioned to look like cat paws, disappeared into the ring. With the literal click of a button, Vigilante _Chat Noir_ disappeared, leaving supermodel _Adrien Agreste_ in his place, wearing a black muscle tee-shirt, white overshirt, and faded jeans. Finger combing his hair into submission, the twenty-four-year-old strolled out of the alley and into the little cafe where he was meeting his target.

He watched her from the corner of his eye as he stood in line for his coffee, partially to make sure she stayed put and partially because he was a cat, and you know what they say about cats and curiosity. It was weird. Although their physical appearances meshed almost flawlessly, Adrien found it hard to connect the bold and rash lady in red that he had come to know and hate, with the girl currently hunched over a huge textbook with her brow furrowed and her nose scrunched in concentration. She was nibbling on the end of her pen as she scanned the page, occasionally removing it from between her soft looking lips to jot down a few notes. She looked almost… _cute_ … and that was not a word he ever thought he would associate with suave, confident Ladybug. Collecting his coffee with an absent ‘thank you’, Adrien wove through the crowded cafe until he stopped at her table. He cleared his throat, stifling a laugh as she jolted violently, but the amusement died in his throat the moment her gaze snapped to his. Because Adrien would never forget those eyes of hers, such a unique shade of blue and so heavily fringed in long, dark lashes. Her eyes were unforgettable, even if the sweet (and slightly confused) smile that crossed her was one that he would never associate with the Lady in Red. He had finally found his Ladybug.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just how did Nino find out Ladybug's identity? And how will Marinette and Adrien's first meeting go? Keep reading to find out!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear. I've been sick on and off for like over a month now. First allergies, then food poisoning. Then my final wisdom tooth is coming in so I had to deal with tooth pain for a bit of time, and now I have a freaking cold. Or possibly strep throat. I need to get checked up. On the bright side, since I couldn't fall asleep at 5 am when I finally finished writing and posting my newest AU, I finished writing this instead xD
> 
> I'll be honest, editing this with Grammarly was so freaking hard. Trying to focus my gaze enough on zero sleep to make sure I corrected the mistakes that showed up underlined in red was nearly impossible. But I managed. If I missed anything, I'm sleep-deprived, sick, and woozy so I have an excuse. Multiple excuses, actually. Literally, my eyes are watering so hard while writing this that everything keeps blurring together so I'm gonna go pass out now
> 
> Happy reading, lovelies <3 <3

_ 1 Month Ago _

Adrien Agreste scanned up and down the deserted street warily before powering off his motorcycle and getting off the bike. Team meetings were never his favorite part of the month because they always ended up in the seediest neighborhoods in Paris. He understood why, of course. In their line of work, anonymity was key and in a neighborhood like this, people didn’t tend to ask questions. Even when a bigshot model rolled up on a bike that probably cost more than all these rundown buildings combined. Here, the people were smart. They looked the other direction when things got weird, they minded their own business. Which was great… but that didn’t stop the chill from sliding down his spine whenever he entered one of these neighborhoods. Where Fu even found these places, he would never know. But the old man was notorious for being paranoid about having his usual meeting spots bugged, so they changed quite frequently. Personally, he thought their enemies had better things to do than bug a bunch of rundown warehouses where a group of wannabe superheroes met to discuss tactics and any info gathered. But hey, he wasn’t a thief and never had been so he couldn’t even begin to guess how they thought.

Pulling off his helmet and shaking out his blonde hair, the young man hurried across the street to where the address Fu had given him was directing him. He ended up in front of a massive brick building, a warehouse probably, that looked like it had been abandoned years ago. The brick was faded from the elements and covered with a thick layer of grime; the windows were all shattered, most of them boarded up. Heavy chains kept the front double doors locked, but Adrien bypassed the doors as per the instructions were given to him and instead headed down the alley to the left of the building. There, he found the fire escape as promised which led directly up to a conveniently shattered and  _ unboarded _ third story window. Adrien scaled the rickety fire escape quickly, in part because it looked unstable but mostly because the sooner he got this over with, the sooner he could go home.

Careful of the glass shards still embedded in the sill, the man hoisted himself effortlessly into the room and then turned to take in his surrounding. Rotting wood floors stretched before him, floorboards missing completing in some places, and the walls were covered in peeling, yellowing wallpaper. Otherwise, the room was barren. Making his way carefully across the floor which creaked and groaned ominously underfoot, he eased open the door and paused to listen. Silence met his ears and he cautiously slipped into the darkened all beyond. Here, doors lined the upper floors on either side and the tiny window at the end of the hall was boarded up, leaving little light to penetrate the darkness. Adrien drew the handgun from the waistband of his pants, drawing comfort from the familiar weight in his hand. The walk down the hall was agonizingly slow as he painstakingly peeked into every room to ensure no one outside of the team was hiding out. When he finally reached the steps, he found it led all the way to the first floor. The second floor was actually little more than a catwalk set above the wide open space of the warehouse’s main floor, and it is here where he found his partner.

The darker skinned man almost melted into the shadows surrounding him, and Adrien almost missed him. But he was well accustomed to his best friend’s silhouette by this point and quickly distinguished him from the shifting shadows that fell across the floor. Confident his friend had already checked the catwalk and the bottom floor, Adrien allowed himself to relax slightly and slid the gun back into his waistband, safety on, before bounding down the steps. Hearing his not-so-silent approach, the man below shrugged away from the wall with a broad grin on his face. In the wide open space of the warehouse’s first floor, most of the windows were still boarded up but enough light filtered in between the cracks and from the grimy skylight overhead that the room's lighting was more gray than black. It allowed a sliver of visibility so that he could sort of make out his partner’s features.

“Nino,” he greeted warmly, moving in for that one-armed, back-thumping bro-hug that men seemed to have perfected over the years. His friend returned the hug in kind. “Where are the others?” The blonde added curiously once he stepped back. Normally, he was the last to arrive but today it looked as if only his partner was there. Nino was quick to confirm that assumption, never one to waste time. He was a straight to the point kind of guy. It was one of his many charms and one of the many reasons Adrien appreciated him so much. Nino didn’t try to bullshit people. He was gentle, but he was honest. Even white lies were beneath him unless it came to his extracurricular activities because how could you just casually admit to anyone that you’re a vigilante superhero fighting crime in between classes and shifts at work.

“They aren’t coming. I just called you in,” he admitted. The blonde arched both brows, although with the low visibility in the room Nino might not have been able to see the look before he scowled.

“If it was just you and me, why the hell are we in this rundown, crappy old warehouse and not in the comfort of my bedroom!?” He asked incredulously. His friend gave a ‘what can you do’ shrug of faux innocence and mock punched the blonde in the arm.

“Aw, I know how much you love coming to these places, bud. So, I set all this up,” he said, sweeping a hand out to encompass “all this”. His friend was significantly less amused.

“You’re an asshole.”

“But I’m  _ your _ asshole,” Nino responded with a waggle of his brow. The two shared a laugh before returning to business once more.

“So, why the secrecy from the team?” Adrien asked, taking a point from his friend’s book and getting straight down to business. Across from him, Nino took a fortifying breath before he spoke.

“ _ IThinkIDiscoveredLadybugsIdentity _ ,” he finally said in a rush.

“ _ What!? _ ” Adrien had not been expecting that, of all things.

“I… it was an accident man. I was just playing around with some facial recognizing software and happened to get a ping and they do look really similar and-” Nino paused to take a deep breath, no doubt to continue the psychobabble thing he did whenever nervous or unsure of himself, but Adrien cut him off before he could.

“So, who is she?” He asked expectantly. Nino seemed to sag, fidgeting reluctantly and seeming unwilling to answer the question. Which was weird, because Nino was as eager to put Ladybug behind bars as they all were.

“Okay so… you can’t freak out and do anything rash, okay?” The darker-skinned man said instead of answering the question. When Adrien hesitated, quite honestly confused as hell, the other man continued. “I mean it, man! I could be wrong. That facial recognition stuff isn’t a hundred percent and I was just goofing around with it. She might not be the real deal…”

“You know her. Personally,” Adrien suddenly said, eyes widening in surprise. His friend’s silence was answer enough. “Okay. Okay, we can handle this. We can take it slow, man. Make sure it’s her before making a move,” he finally assured, earning a grateful look from his friend. The man took one last breath before spilling her name.

“Her name is Marinette. Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

“I’ve never heard of her,” Adrien mused thoughtfully.

“She’s no one famous… we went to school together from the time we were in  _ Maternelle Petite _ . She was one of my closest friends growing up. Sweetest girl you’ve ever met, always willing to help out her classmates. Hell, I even had a crush on her at one point,” he admitted, raking a hand through the short brown curls atop his head.

“That doesn’t sound like the Ladybug I know,” Adrien pointed out uncertainly.

“I know!” Nino threw his hands up in agitation. “I know it doesn’t sound like her. Marinette… even you would have fallen in love with her, man. Everyone in our class had at least a tiny crush on her, even some of the girls. She was just sugar and spice and everything nice… plus a healthy dose of cupcakes and rainbows and unicorns thrown in for good measure.”

“Really doesn’t sound like the girl I’ve been trying to put behind bars for the last decade,” Adrien reiterated.

“I know, that’s why we need to be discreet. I don’t want to jump the gun if it’s  _ not _ her, you know?” He asked. The blonde sighed, raking a hand through his hair. He really didn’t want to go chasing some random girl all over Paris on a hunch his friend had, especially if she was as sweet and gentle as his friend said she was. People with that much goodness in their hearts didn’t go around stealing for fun. But, at the same time, he trusted Nino implicitly. Nino wouldn’t be telling him all this unless he really, truly,  _ honestly _ believed the facial recognition software hadn’t made a mistake.

“Okay. Okay, I’ll do it. I’ll be discreet, follow her and see if I can catch her doing something incriminating. We’ll leave the team out of it for now and see what happens,” he finally said, rewarded by his best friend’s answering grin. He didn’t smile back, his face stern as he continued speaking. “But if this girl, Marinette, is Ladybug… we have to take her in, Nino. You can’t let your friendship get in the way of the job, got it?”

Nino nodded sagely. He understood perfectly and there was a determined look in his eye when he reiterated, “Got it.”

  
  
  


_ Present Day _

Lost as she was in thought, Marinette didn’t notice the presence hovering over her until he cleared his throat. The young woman felt a jolt go through her body at the sudden sound and her eyes snapped up to meet the most glorious emerald orbs she had ever had the pleasure of seeing. She blinked, momentarily struck dumb. She had to give Alya credit where credit was due. The man before her was positively stunning, his blonde hair stylishly messy (it almost looked windblown) and a bit of blonde scruff on his chin and upper lip giving him a slightly rugged look. He was dressed casually in hip-hugging jeans and a black muscle tee-shirt that left absolutely nothing to the imagination. The white overshirt didn’t do much to hide his toned arms either; if anything it just made the well-defined muscle stand out all the more. 

She swallowed hard, mouth suddenly dry, and aware that she was staring like an idiot she reached out to fumble for her drink. That was all she needed. A drink to help her sudden case of cottonmouth and then she would be fine. Unfortunately, Marinette Dupain-Cheng had never really been known for her gracefulness and with her eyes locked firmly on the man before her, her aim wasn’t exactly on point. Her hand, moving faster than what one might deem strictly necessary for the situation, flashed out and knocked against the cup sending it topping off the edge of the table. Her eyes widened in alarm, and she braced herself for the inevitable splash of cold coffee as it would undoubtedly splatter everything within a ten-foot radius including her bare legs, but it never came. The blonde, reacting quicker than she would have thought possible if not for the fact that she was sitting right in front of him, lunged forward and caught the cup midair placing it back on the table right side up with a lopsided grin. It looked like she hadn’t even lost a single, life-sustaining drop thanks to him.

“That could have been quite the  _ cat _ astrophe,” the blonde said, wiggling his eyebrows playfully as he beamed down at her. Marinette couldn’t help it. She snorted, lifting a hand to cover her mouth and hide the faint smile curving her lips as she stared up at the man.

“That was terrible,” she said, shaking her head behind her hand.

“Ah, but you laughed all the same,” the blonde retorted, green eyes twinkling as he slid into the seat across from her. He extended a hand and she reluctantly dropped hers from in front of her face to take his. He immediately flipped it over, placing a kiss on her back of her hand that sent tingles running up her arm. “ _Enchanté,_ _ma belle_. I am Adrien Pierce and you… you must be Marinette. You’re as ravishing as Miss Cesaire implied.”

“And you… are way more of a dork than Alya let on. Does that really work for you, like, ever?” Marinette shot back, cocking her head as an amused smile curved her lips. Normally, Marinette hated overly flirtatious guys. She got flirted with at her Gabriel internship almost constantly. There was something about Adrien, however, that made her okay with it. He didn’t seem to be doing it in that overly sexist way that a lot of the models she worked with tended to flirt, and there was just something about him that screamed harmless. He almost reminded her of a little kitten. It was kind of cute. Across from her, Adrien’s shoulders drooped and his lower lip jutted out in a pout.

“Well yes, usually. You’re the first to ever actually call me on it,” he responded sullenly, fiddling with his own coffee cup. Chuckling, the young woman withdrew her hand from his and shot him an easy grin.

“If it’s any consolation, I work around male models all the time. At this point, I’m kind of immune,” she explained with a shrug. It was true. Ever since M. Agreste had decided to start paying her, she had started working more closely with the Design Team and the company models. That is, as opposed to fetching coffee and doing grunt work like the other interns. Models, particularly the male ones, tended to ooze sexual tension wherever they went and the ones she worked with were particularly flirtatious considering she was the youngest female on the team. She had become something of an expert when it came to brushing off their constant and unwanted advances.

“Fair enough,” Adrien conceded with a dramatic sigh. “So, you work in fashion?”

“I do! I’m in my final year at Esmod and I’m interning with Gabriel Fashion right now,” she said enthusiastically. She tended to light up whenever she spoke of her job and schoolwork. Exhausting as it all was, fashion had always been her one true passion. Across from her, Adrien started coughing violently into his fist. Worried, Marinette half rose from her chair and reached for him, but he held up his free hand to ward her off.

“I’m fine. Really,” he choked out, beating a closed fist against his chest to clear his airways. When he finally got his breathing under control he gave her a shaky smile. “Gabriel Fashion, huh? Th-that’s cool.”

“Y-yeah,” she agreed, “and you work for LeClaire?”

“I do, yes. That is to say, I model for them from time to time,” he explained with a slight shrug.

“That must pay well.”

“Fairly well, yes,” Adrien confirmed.

“Then, if you don’t mind my asking, why the need for a roommate?” Marinette asked, her curiosity getting the best of her. Really, with a face like Adrien’s, she imagined he had to be one of LeClaire’s more popular male models. The more popular a model, the bigger the paycheck. That being said, there was no way Adrien could be hurting for cash at the moment.

“I’ve never lived alone,” Adrien said with a shrug. “I’ve lived with my father most of my life and recently moved out but I find living alone doesn’t really suit me. I’m something of a social butterfly,” he explained with what he must have thought was a charming smile. To Marinette, the smile looked strained and awkward. A clear sign he was either omitting part of the truth or stretching it to suit his needs.

“That’s the only reason?” She pressed.

“I… also might not know how to take care of basic household chores such as laundry and grocery shopping,” he said after a moment, his cheeks pinking adorably.

“I see,” Marinette mused, drumming her fingers thoughtfully on the table top. She supposed, all things considered, teaching him how to do chores wouldn’t be the most difficult thing in the world. He was obviously willing to learn, and aside from his ridiculous attempts at being charming, Adrien seemed like a nice enough guy. They seemed to have similar senses of humor, they were obviously compatible in that they both worked in the fashion industry. Adrien would probably understand her hectic schedule better than anyone else she ended up living with, even Alya. 

Not wanting to rush anything, Marinette started asking Adrien more questions, intent on getting to know him as best she could in a brief interview. Her questions ranged from work-related to interests and hobbies, to favorite books and movies. She discovered he had a cat, Felix, which she had assured would be fine. She, herself, admitted to owning a dog, Bridgette, and when prompted had brought up pictures of the furball on her phone. Adrien had gushed over the pictures of the tri-colored miniature sheltie, before pulling own his own phone to show her a multitude of images of Felix, a sleek blonde tabby cat with pale blue eyes. Sitting in the warm, sunlit cafe time slipped away and ceased to have meaning. For perhaps the first time in what seemed like years, Marinette didn’t notice the seconds ticking into minutes, the minutes into hours, as they talked about anything and everything that came to mind.

It was only hours later, when the sun had dipped behind the horizon, that she realized with a start that she had squandered all her study time and would now have twice as much work to catch up on over the next few days. Still, she couldn’t bring herself regret the time she had spent with the blonde and when they finally stood up to bid one another goodbye, she found herself reluctant to do so. Talking to Adrien was easy like she had been doing it her whole life, and they had an insane amount of things in common. She realized with a start that this was it, that connection she had been looking for. It was different than the connection she had with Alya, but at the same time, it was really similar. The bottom line was, she and Adrien just clicked in a way she hadn’t really clicked with any of the other applicants. So, just as he was about to turn and head off in the opposite direction, she decided to be impulsive and throw caution to the wind for once (less someone else snatches up her perfect roommate) and called out to him. 

“Hey, Adrien?”

“Yeah?” He paused, glancing back at her with a dimpled smile ready and waiting on his face.

“Would you… would you like to be my roommate?” She asked tentatively. The blonde’s eyebrows shot up to his hairline, excitement and something else she couldn’t quite pin down (triumph, maybe) flashed in his gem green gaze.

“Really? I passed the interview?” He asked with a boyish excitement that, okay, maybe she did find a  _ little  _ charming. Much more than that faux bravado and over-the-top flirting from earlier. She returned the smile in kind and nodded warmly.

“With flying colors,” she assured. “I can call you tomorrow if that’s okay with you, and we can set up a time to go apartment hunting?”

Adrien grinned broadly and gave an eager nod of agreement. “Sounds  _ purrfect _ ,” he said teasingly. Marinette suppresses a laugh and rolled her eyes instead, finally bidding him a goodbye for real and taking off in the opposite direction towards her parent’s bakery. If she had thought to look back, she might have noticed the way Adrien watched her intently as she walked away, and she might have noticed him slipping into the alleyway behind the cafe the moment she turned the corner. If she had looked back, she might also have noticed the black silhouette trailing after her from the rooftops. But she didn’t look back, too giddy over the prospect of her new roommate, and so she noticed none of these things as she made her way home.

  
  
  


“How’d the interview go?” The man on the roof asked, not bothering to turn around at the soft thud of boots landing behind him. Instead, he continued to gaze out over the city, his eyes fixed on the Eiffel Tower. With evening rapidly falling upon them now, the sky darkening by the second, she was already ablaze with light in all her glory. Even after being raised here, he still found the sight breathtakingly beautiful. Chat Noir strolled up to the green-clad man, his belt tail swinging like a pendulum behind him in the light breeze.

“As to be expected. With all the information you gave me, it was a breeze to win her over. She asked me to be her new roommate as we were leaving,” the cat-themed vigilante responded, coming to a halt when he reached his friend’s side. He glanced at his friend from the corner of his eye, the green film over the eyeholes of his black mask slightly distorting his vision and giving even his man’s dark skin a greenish tint. “You okay?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m good. It’s just hard to think about,” he admitted softly.

“Carapace,” Chat Noir laid a hand on his friend’s shoulder, trying to offer what little comfort he could, and earned a small smile from the other man.

“Really, I’m okay, Chat. If Marinette is Ladybug, she dug her own grave and she needs to lie in it,” he said firmly, finally turning to face his black-clad partner. His masked face was grim as if he were bracing for the worst, and Chat hated that that was exactly what he was going to get. “So, are you any closer to figuring out if it’s really her?”

Oh, it’s definitely her. No doubt about it,” he confirmed after a moment’s hesitance. There really was no sugarcoating it. Better to just rip the band-aid off and get it over with. Pushing back the black hood, Chat Noir raked his fingers roughly through his hair before chancing another glance at his friend. He looked utterly defeated, shoulders sagging, a terrible look of sadness in his eyes.

“You’re positive?” He asked after a long moment.

“It’s her, Car. Her eyes… I’ve never met anyone else who has eyes like hers, much less in France. The physical similarities, they’re too close to be a coincidence unless Marinette has an evil twin?” He pointed out. Carapace shook his head dejectedly. Marinette was an only child. For a while, neither of them said anything, just staring out at the Eiffel Tower glowing in the distance. Chat was content to let his friend work through his thoughts, and was rewarded when the turtle-themed vigilante finally sighed and straightened up.

“Alright. Let’s go call in the troops and bag us a bug,” Carapace finally sighed, a determined look settling across his face.

“No,” Chat Noir responded, making no move to straighten from where he was now leaning against the rooftops guardrail.

“No?” His friend reiterated, confusion written across his face. “Don’t tell me you’ve fallen under the  _ Mari Love Spell _ too.”

“Of course not!” Chat Noir snapped sharply, green eyes narrowing to slits as he glared at his friend. Carapace held his hands up in surrender and with a growl, the blonde jerked his gaze forward once more. “I’m not under any sort of spell. I’m not hesitating or second-guessing either. Ladybug needs to go down but we need to be smart about this,” he pointed out.

“If we all go, cut off all her exit routes, we could have her in a cell tonight,” Carapace pointed out but the blonde was already shaking his head.

“Ladybug isn’t stupid, Car. If we go in there, guns blazing, she’ll just pull some of that voodoo witchcraft of hers and make herself disappear without a trace. She’ll run, and we’ll lose her. We need to be smart about this,” he insisted. Beside him, his partner was nodding silently in agreement and the two lapsed into silence as they considered their options. Occasionally one would open their mouth, a suggestion at the tip of their tongue before they ultimately dismissed the idea without speaking it out loud.

“We need a way to get her to let her guard down,” Chat mumbled to himself, not intending for his friend to hear. With their close proximity, however, Carapace heard his words in perfect clarity.

“You could always seduce her,” he said jokingly. The blonde snorted in amusement at the ludicrous suggestion.

“You can’t be serious, Car. Me? Seduce Ladybug? She’d smell that trap coming a mile away,” he scoffed. 

“Not Ladybug,” Carapace responded absentmindedly, still mostly thinking aloud. “Marinette. You seduce Marinette as Adrien. Make her fall in love with you, and then we nab her. Boom. She gets thrown in jail and you get hailed the Hero of Paris.”

Chat opened his mouth to refuse, tell him it would never work, but he paused before the words left his mouth. Because as unconventional and frankly underhanded as it seemed, it could work. Ladybug might be the master of seduction and flirtation in the suit, but he had met her out of the suit now. She was still bold and charming as Marinette, but she was softer, shyer, more vulnerable. Potentially more susceptible to his advances, if he found the right seduction method because obviously, his bolder approach hadn’t worked out well in the cafe. Granted he hadn’t even been trying then; that was simply his usual Chat persona slipping through. But if he did make a conscious effort he could probably win her over with minimal effort. Marinette struck him as the type of girl who was lonely but didn’t want to admit she was lonely. She might welcome the advances of a handsome model, as long as he made sure not to act like his far cruder and overly sexualized brethren.

“It could work,” he mused quietly, rocking back and forth on his heels as he considered his options. Honestly, he didn’t have a better plan at the moment. Carapace jolted at his words, momentarily confused before realization took hold of him.

“No, wait-” He began, but Chat cut him off with a hearty slap to the back and a wide, impish grin.

“Thanks, man. I’m going to go plan my seduction out now,” he said turning to bound away.

“Chat.  _ Chat! _ Adrien, I was just joking!” The green-clad hero shouted after him on the still night air. But Chat Noir was deaf to his friend’s cries, too excited at the prospect of finally catching his Ladybug and throwing her in jail to listen to his shouts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lemme know what you think!

**Author's Note:**

> If you're a fan of my work, you know the drill! Drop a comment, a kudo, subscribe to my work. All of these things (though namely your kind and supportive words) give me that extra oomph needed to ensure the next installment of my story comes out quicker. Your feedback gives me life. There is nothing better than reading that you enjoyed something that I wrote (though constructive criticism is also welcome) and it encourages me to keep doing what I love. I namely write for myself (first and foremost) because its what I love most aside from maybe reading, but it's your support that makes me continue writing and posting my work.
> 
> So, a big shoutout to all my lovely readers new and old alike, and I hope you enjoy my third entry for AU Yeah AUgust


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